Edmonton

Like a reader hooked on a bestselling thriller, the design of libraries has enthralled architects and the general public for centuries. From the classical mahogany grandeur of the world-famous Long Room at Trinity College Dublin to the post-war, brick modernism of the British Library in London, the important role of libraries in our lives has historically demanded a degree of architectural thought and consideration.

In recent times, however, that historic role has changed. With the digital age revolutionizing how we access, research, and communicate information, libraries are no longer reserved exclusively for books. Libraries today must act as ‘information hubs’, with the flexibility to accommodate a diverse range of media and arts. Architects have responded to the challenge of a new era, reimagining how libraries are built, experienced, and utilized, without entirely throwing away the rule book.

Below, we have rounded-up 12 libraries from around the world, all with architecture from the top shelf.

French artist and illustrator Vincent Mahéhas shared his most recent work with us -- a series of illustrations made for a special edition of Telerama magazine that depicts the life of the renowned Swiss-French architect, Le Corbusier. In just eight pages, the artist highlights the most relevant facts of this unforgettable architect's life. Expressed in green and pink tones, we can see key moments that have without a doubt shifted the course of contemporary architecture, with the extreme care and clarity that Mahé's work presents us.

The Edmonton Arts Council has commissioned Marc Fornes / THEVERYMANY to construct an “architectural folly” in the Canadian city’s Borden Park. The project, known as “Vaulted Willow,” aims to “resolve and delineate structure, skin and ornamentation into a single unified system” by “exploring lightweight, ultra-thin, self-supported shells through the development of custom computational protocols of structural form-finding and descriptive geometry.”

British based FaulknerBrowns Architects have proposed plans for "one of only two velodromes in recent memory being planned" in the city of Edmonton, Canada. In a place where winters are cold and long, reaching -20 degrees celcius, the facility can be adapted for both indoor and outdoor use throughout the year. Clad in Canadian timber and polished stainless steel shingles wrapping around the building like a "twisted ribbon resembling the twisted sinuous cycle track," the scheme will be only the second major indoor cycle track facility in the country.

Located on the corner of 84th Street NW and Jasper Avenue, on the northern bank of the North Saskatchewan River and just east of Edmonton’s downtown core, the W12 – Real Time Control Building building, playing a crucial role in punctuating open public space along the river’s edge. Designed by gh3, the building will be highly visible from the north, south and east, seen from a series of vantage points ranging from distant to near. The project is an opportunity to invest in the design of the plant enclosure while celebrating the importance of municipal infrastructure and recognizing the role infrastructure buildings have in shaping the built fabric of the city. More images and architects’ description after the break.

The City of Edmonton and the Edmonton Eskimo Football Club selected MacLennan Jaunkalns Miller Architects, with local partners HIP Architects, as the prime consultant for the development of the $96 million Multi-Use Recreation Complex and Field House attached to the south end of Edmonton’s Commonwealth Stadium. MJMA was invited and selected from a shortlist of 12 Sport and Community Architects from across Canada for this highly visible project.

MJMA is working with the multiple client groups, various stakeholders, and the appointed construction manager Clark Builders to deliver a phased and fast tracked facility to be open for the 2010 Grey Cup, with the remaining recreation complex to open Spring 2012. More images and architects’ description after the break.

Project Year

Canadian architects HCMA shared with us their project “Jasper Place Branch Library”, located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. For this project, HCMA is working in joint-venture with Dub Architects, an Edmonton-based firm. See more images and architect’s description after the break.

Edmonton City Council has mandated that the lands now occupied by the Edmonton City Centre Airport be transformed into a world-class sustainable community. The City of Edmonton seeks talented and creative minds to prepare a master plan for this strategic property in the core of the City. The revitalization of approximately 217 hectares of land in the heart of Edmonton represents an opportunity for Edmonton to place itself at the forefront of global cities that are seeking to establish the highest standards for sustainability to foster a living, working, and learning environment of unparalleled environmental and social quality.